Don't Let Your Mind Make You Sick

[RobinN]

Your beliefs can make you sick, says Dr. Richard Kradin, author of “The Placebo Response and the Power of Unconscious Healing,” and associate professor at Harvard Medical School. Expecting the worst from a medical condition can produce the nocebo effect — the evil twin of the placebo effect.

The placebo effect is beneficial and refers to health gains caused by dummy pills or other treatments that shouldn’t produce a positive effect, but do thanks to the power of a patient’s belief. The nocebo effect is just the opposite — patients expect side effects to a pill or a bad outcome to a treatment or condition and that’s what they get, thanks to the power of belief, even when the pill or treatment is harmless.

“Your beliefs, doubts, and fears can produce unpleasant symptoms of illness or slow down the healing process,” says Dr. Kradin. Here are Dr. Kradin’s six top ways to avoid the nocebo effect:

1. Don’t make assumptions based on appearance. “Studies show that people believe small pills are less effective than large ones, red pills cause more side effects than blue, generic are less effective than brand-name drugs, and oral medication is less potent than injected medication,” says Dr. Kradin.

2. Don’t have too much information. “When patients read and learn about all the side effects from a drug insert in distressing detail, they are more likely to experience those symptoms than patients who were unaware of the side effects.”

3. Don’t believe misinformation. “So many people believe penicillin allergies are commonplace that a statistically impossible percentage of patients (10 percent) experience symptoms of penicillin allergies, even though less than 3 percent of adults are actually allergic.

4. Don’t pay attention to scary language. “The language adopted to describe side effects of a drug can greatly influence expectancies and outcomes. In one study, instructing subjects to ‘look for evidence of nasal obstruction’ evoked more upper airway symptoms than instructing them to "pay attention to the free passage of air."

5. Don’t pay attention to irrelevant environmental cues. “Nausea occurs in a full one third of chemotherapy patients and may be triggered by incidental environmental cues, like being in a treatment room the same the color as the last one where a patient felt sick.”

6. Don’t fear the worst. In the Framingham Heart Study, women who feared they were at risk for heart disease were nearly four times more likely to die than women with similar risk factors — obesity and high levels of cholesterol and blood pressure — who didn't.

Taken from Newsmax Health
Dr. Richard Kradin, author of “The Placebo Response and the Power of Unconscious Healing,” and associate professor at Harvard Medical School.

[josieb]

Robin:

The article makes a lot of sense. When it comes to dealing with anxiety and fears, I know I bring a lot of it on myself. I especially understand the "doubt" part. It seems like after my surgery and during the continuing recovery (with trying new meds, etc.), I have caused myself a lot of unnecessary worrying when it comes to doubting my own abilities and not having any faith in myself. Sometimes the memory problems have effects, but lately, I've been trying harder to be more positive. As a result, things seem to be going smoother. Thanks for the information. Sincerely, Josie

[haird18]

Robin ,

This article is finally talking about many issues I have explained to many friends and family members. Somewhere I have heard of this before that is why I like my new magazine too . It discuss' many things like this.
David

[RobinN]

That is good to hear that things are going smoother.
I too have a much better day, when I begin it on a positive note. When I don't dwell on situations that I can't do anything about. I believe when we try too hard, that it backfires.

Keep those positive thoughts, Josie.

[RobinN]

I am glad that it was beneficial David.
I think your family and friends have a lot to learn from you.
Keep that chin up.

[Meetz1064]

agree with the article. Your mind plays a HUGE part in how you deal with things........and it definitely determines whether or not you're going to be sick or not. If you have a positive outlook, things go well. If you don't....well, things go down the toilet. It's really quite that simple.

[Cint]

Like once said,

"As a man thinketh, so is he."

[brain]

Actually that is an excellent post Robin!

They actually prescribed me PCN (penicillin), and I
developed a really bad reaction: hives, my throat
became swollen shut where I couldn't breathe, and
ran a fever, and so on - and that was a true allergy
to PCN.

Then came ASA (Aspirin) - where I developed red
rashs, throat swelling up as if it was closing up my
air pipe, and so on - and I learned from my Pediatrician;
if you're allergic to PCN - you're going to be allergic
to ASA usually.

And it just grew on from there since childhood ... from
regular medications to anti-epileptic drugs.

Currently, I'm paying "one hell of a price" for the decades of
all of this of what they had done. But am I mad? Upset? Angry?
No, not really - for the way I see it, I really believe they were
all doing everything they could to the best of the knowledge
and ability for that time and Era.

-----------------------------------------------------


BUT I DO AGREE 100% that people DO have problems with
"mind games", thinking something is drastically wrong with
them - whether they heard it on television, read it in a Magazine,
saw it on the Internet, or overheard someone blah, blah, blah'ing
about it.

ONE good thing about PLACEBO Medication (which is nothing
else that Sugar Pills) - the Physician will KNOW if the patient
has a 'psychological' problem or a real genuine problem. For
if the placebo does not work, and the patient is still having
problems, then the Physician can then go from there and
proceed with testing(s). But if a patient is "instantly" cured
because of a placebo - the Physician would know, they never
had the problem in the first place; and this eliminates a lot of
unnecessary time and waste of everyone's energy. (It doesn't
matter what health problem(s) it may be)

Another thing that the Physician can notice is the Patient's
behavior - they're smart Doctors (the good ones). There is
a difference between a "phony baloney" and a "genuine ill"
patients, and some are quite easily to detect and spot a fluke
than others. "Bad Doctors" actually takes advantage of such
"phony baloney" patients because they see them as resource
and generate revenue in their office, as long as they keep
writing up placebo pills and makes them happy and let them
ramble all they want .. but there's danger in that field however;
which does concern me: Sometimes those patients CAN have
a genuine medical problem and those Physicians can MISS OUT
ON IT and endangering the very life of the patient they're treating!

So Brother Kookey Bazookey can tell you that Dr. Kerpow is
100% wonderful and Sister Doubledot would also back him up,
and you would be under the impression that Dr. Kerpow is an
awesome Physician - totally unaware that Brother Kookey and
Sister Doubledot are under placebos!

Think about that ...

[haird18]

Robin, dealing with doctors that aren't as educated as we once thought and trusted. and they don't test for some of these things that are important tour brain too.
David

[TeeTees]

Yep, 100% agreement with this topic. I've always believed in this, as it's the easiest way to explain how I can be the bain of my own life at times.

If I can switch off my mind from even 'thinking' about me having seizure's, I'm convinced I can go forever without having another.

BUT....and here's the but....it's like that time when you hurt your finger - no matter how much you know it hurt Yesterday, you still have to press on it to see if the pain is still there. The same happens with me and my seizure's - I have to carry out a 'self-check' to see if they've gone completely at times....and this usually results in my finding the answer being NO. I know, I know, you're all saying "well, why try then ?"....you'll find the answer the next time to hurt that finger....it's called Human Behaviour

I can even bring on my Colitis if I think I have a bad stomach coming on.

If we can just control that complicated thing called the mind, we'll have full self-dominance

[haird18]

Robin,


Maybe that's why I am not married because my ex was like this all the tome too!
David

[RobinN]

So what methods can be used to turn this around. Daily affirmations? Meditation?
Because "if you are doing what you have always done then you will get the same results that you always have"